This Game That We Play
by Blockbusterism
Summary: Six months. Six months after everything happened and still, nothing was right for Danny Desai.


**A/N**: This is a late summer one-shot I've been thinking about doing _much_ earlier this year and now that I've finally gotten around to completing it, it's fall! :o (If you need to get into the "summer feel" of things though, I suggest listening to Sevyn Streeter's "It Won't Stop," which actually inspired the idea of this fic, but it's not necessary at all, in my opinion). This fic is set a few months after the series finale and does include references to 1B (even though I would much rather pretend that 1B never existed lol) as well as hefty dose of angst.

There's an original character in this so if you need a visual, search for "Broderick Hunter"

There's smut too (towards the end) so be mindful of that as well!

Hope you enjoy!

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><p><strong>This Game That We Play<strong>

Danny tilted his head back, the bitter remnants of the beer bottle he gripped in his hand spilling into his mouth with the motion as he swallowed generously, reveling in the way the liquid burned his throat.

His eyes scanned his surroundings, normally russet colored orbs shimmering with flecks of gold to reflect the large bonfire that flamed a few feet before him as excited high schoolers gyrated and grinded about, the alcohol in their bottles and plastic cups sloshing in tune to the music that blared from speakers some distance away.

He certainly could not find fault in their actions.

This was their last weekend before school would begin on Monday, after all.

Though Danny would have much rather stayed home, within the silent, somewhat comforting confines of his bedroom, Cole did mention the bountiful amount of alcohol that would be present—free of charge, no less—and he found himself unable to reject the offer.

And, lately, that was usually the case whenever the liquid poison was mentioned.

Much like his own parents.

Danny subconsciously lifted a hand to rub away at his temple as he moved some distance away from the party and situated himself closer to the waves that ebbed and flowed onto the fine sand beneath his shoes, his eyes focusing on the blur of indigo and persimmon that splashed across the sky as the sun continued its descent behind him.

The sight would have had a calming effect on him at any other given moment, yet Danny could only think of how the contrasting colors reminded him of the two girls that once held—that _still_ held—an immeasurable amount of importance within his life.

Because, whether it was a coincidence or a way of the universe reminding him of how much he fucked up in showcasing this brilliant masterpiece in the sky, he knew that those were their favorite colors.

Orange for Jo.

Purple for Lacey.

Danny stifled a chuckle completely devoid of humor as he belatedly remembered that he had seen Jo earlier, one hand secured in with Rico's, a bottle of beer in the other as she shared a gentle laugh with Phoebe.

She looked good, he thought.

Much better than how she did a mere six months ago.

Her parents' separation in light of her mother's shocking revelations, the knowledge of a half-brother currently being held in a mental institution after miraculously surviving a self-inflicted bullet wound to the head, and his own warped, misguided feelings towards her; all of them were factors that could have very well led to her sharing a room right alongside said half-brother.

Yet, extensive counseling and therapy along with a newfound love for painting allowed Jo Masterson to find some form of healing that Danny could only pray for on the nights that sleep would cruelly evade him.

Unfortunately for him, part of that healing process for her involved cutting him out of her life almost completely.

So now they were far from best friends.

More like acquaintances.

And seeing her with her normally frazzled, blonde curls now straightened and smoothed back into a ponytail, the longest layers stylishly dyed black, simple makeup applied with black, winged eyeliner outlining her icy blue eyes, a silver ring within her septum piercing, and a white, lace top baring her midriff with ruby red lips stretched in a genuine smile, Danny could not deny the happiness that radiated off of her in waves.

Then their eyes met and Danny swallowed the urge to look away.

Instead, he offered to raise his empty bottle, shaking it slightly in an awkward form of a greeting as he forced a tight smile onto his face.

He hadn't realized how much his chest had constricted until it relaxed once he saw the soft smile that graced her own face as she mimicked his actions in return. Immediately, he noticed Rico and Phoebe craning their necks to see who Jo had greeted and their eyes finally landed on him.

Danny couldn't even feign surprise as he watched their reactions slowly morph from indifference to forced politeness, offering halfhearted waves with fake smiles plastered onto their face before promptly returning to their own conversations.

He immediately moved out of their line of sight not long after that.

Now, as he stood watching the foamy water threaten to creep underneath his shoes with the rising tide, his thoughts shifted to the other girl who haunted his dreams nearly every night.

Lacey Porter.

Sweet, sweet Lacey Porter.

Lacey, who had remained in his corner as he selfishly chipped away at her trust and love and abused her friendship.

Lacey, who had spilled everything she had for him until she had nothing for herself to stand on her own.

Lacey, who could no longer deal with the emptiness of her own corner and who departed for Pennsylvania without telling a soul.

Or so he had thought.

Danny was sure that he would be kicking himself to the grave as he thought about how long it had taken him to realize that she was gone.

It was after the fourth day that he had discovered that something was gravely amiss and it was after the fifth day he had found himself frantically banging on the Porters' front door one early Friday morning, begging to see Lacey, naively thinking she had come down with some sort of serious illness.

Only for Judy to simply reply that Lacey had left for her grandparents' home shortly before slamming the door in his face.

Needless to say, it felt as though he had been pricked a million times over with icy needles for several days after that.

And then Phoebe had thrown it in his face when he approached her the following Monday morning in sheer desperation, wondering if she had any means of contacting Lacey since apparently she had also changed her number and wasn't answering any of her emails.

Unsurprisingly, Phoebe didn't provide him with any of the information he had asked for.

Later that same day, a haggard and worn out Jo calmly told him that their relationship was too toxic for her and that she needed space to deal with all of the recent trauma.

And, just like that, he had lost two of the most important women in his life.

Before he could even remotely begin to decide his next course of action, Danny's legs were already striding towards the nearest cooler, one hand bracing the lid while the other fished through the bitter ice to pull what would be his third beer bottle of the early evening.

As he was straightening his posture while feverishly untwisted the metal cap of the bottle, Danny's eyes immediately widened and his heart seemingly lurched into his rib cage before settling into the pit of his abdomen at the sight of the last person he had ever expected to see.

And she was staring right back at him.

* * *

><p>Lacey fidgeted with the tiny purse in her lap as she stared out at the view through her windshield, her mind a flurry of thoughts as she debated whether to put the car in reverse and peel out of the parking lot before anyone caught sight of her or swallow her anxiety and step onto the beach with her face schooled into the superior mask that she had always held when she was at the top of her game.<p>

Even if the former sounded like an _extremely_ viable option at the moment.

The sudden vibration of her phone alerted her of a new message and she was already aware of its sender before she removed the device from her purse's confines.

**U here yet?**

Stifling a heavy sigh, Lacey moved her nimble fingers along the screen and swiftly tapped out a reply.

**Yea Im in the parking lot**

Almost immediately, she received a response.

**Ok! C u in a few**

Seeing no other way out, Lacey mentally gathered the fragments of inner strength she could find and made one last glance in the rearview mirror, inspecting her light but impeccable makeup for any flaws before exiting the vehicle.

The wind caressed her face, slightly disturbing her recently cropped, shoulder-length, wavy locks and she ran a self-conscious hand through the tendrils as she gingerly crossed the terrain that led to the beach. Using the utmost care, she held her off-white, tightly pleated asymmetrical chiffon skirt with one hand as her sandals sunk slightly underneath the white sand. Her large brown eyes immediately took note of the bonfire where the majority of the party's attendees were enjoying themselves before she was nearly bombarded by an excited Phoebe, with Jo and Rico following not too far behind.

"You made it!" Phoebe gushed happily, wrapping her pale arms around the taller girl. "For a second I thought you weren't going to show up."

Lacey smiled, embracing her friend in return for a moment before pulling away just slightly. "Trust me. The thought crossed my mind a few times."

Seemingly undeterred by Lacey's frank admission, Phoebe laughed as she stepped further away, allowing space for Jo and Rico to greet Lacey as well.

"Hey, Jo," Lacey murmured, a soft smile on her lips as she hugged the petite girl.

"I'm glad you came, Lacey," Jo gently replied before pulling back a mere arms width apart. "We missed you."

Lacey's gaze softened at the words as her smile widened. "I missed you guys too."

"Don't I get to say 'hi' though?" Rico pouted, earning laughs from the rest of the girls as Lacey gave him a chaste hug in reply.

They easily shifted into conversation, catching up on the tiny details that weren't mentioned in their occasional calls or emails.

A year ago, the four of them operating in such a friendly space may have seemed like an impossibility. Yet, time allowed them to heal and mature and mend the bridges that had been burned, especially when faced with the undeniable reality that time was also volatile.

Events of the past year served as a cruel and necessary reminder of that fact.

"You should've seen the look on Jo's face when she realized that there was no turning back for her," Rico laughed, much to Jo's dismay. "The guy had his needle ready to go and she nearly broke my hand off when he started going at it."

"Did you mention the part where you cried with me after it was done?" Jo with a wry smile, enjoying the way Rico suddenly flushed red in embarrassment as he stuttered out an explanation while Lacey and Phoebe giggled in response.

Lacey took a meager sip of her drink in her own cup, her eyes momentarily focusing on the beautiful hues splashed along the sky. Her lips formed into a soft smile as she felt the warmth that the colors emitted along as the tinkle of laughter that surrounded her.

She really did miss this.

"So how have you been, Lace?" Lacey heard Jo suddenly ask, pulling her out of her reverie. Lacey blinked as she belatedly realized that Phoebe and Rico had left for more drinks. Her eyes focused on Jo, whose face grew a bit somber, letting her know that the seemingly innocuous question was a lot more loaded than she personally liked.

"I…I'm good," Lacey exhaled, her right hand wrapping its way around her left arm as she shifted slightly on her feet. "I'm doing a lot better. I didn't think being with my grandparents would've made a difference but turns out I was wrong," she finished with an airy laugh.

Jo nodded, a small smile gracing her own lips. "That's good. I'm glad things are looking up…" The blonde polished the rest of her beer as a tense silence fell between them.

After a moment, Jo quietly said, "You know...Dr. Wright is really nice. She helped me get through a lot of…what happened. I can give you her number if you wa—"

"Therapy really isn't my thing," Lacey cut in, adding a thankful smile when she noticed the slightly crestfallen look that appeared on the younger girl's face at her swift reply. "But thanks for the offer. Maybe one of these days I'll give it another a shot."

Jo nodded quickly, awkwardly rocking on the balls of her feet as they fell into another bout of silence.

"How…how is he?" Lacey whispered after a while, her gaze lowering to her feet. She could feel Jo's wide eyes staring at her but she wasn't sure if she was ready to face the answer reflected in them.

"He looks okay, I guess," Jo answered with a sigh.

"I-is he sleeping? Eating properly?" the questions tumbled from Lacey's lips before she could take them back.

Jo regarded her for a moment, a myriad of emotions flitting across her face before settling on confusion. "You know I haven't really talked to him in, like, months, Lacey."

She bit her tongue from revealing that she did notice he looked a little gaunter, a little more worn,

A shell of his former self.

"I know, I know," Lacey said quickly. "It's just…,"she trailed off as she bit her lower lip, unable to string the words together to form an explanation.

Especially when she wasn't entirely sure why she asked in the first place.

Wasn't entirely sure why she cared.

Wasn't entirely sure why she _still_ cared.

Or maybe she did and didn't have the mental fortitude to properly dissect the reasons.

"Is he here though?" Lacey asked instead. Just as Jo was opening her mouth to answer, Lacey's eyes widened at the sight of the very person she was referring to, still some distance away and his face hidden behind the lid of the cooler he held as he dug through the container for what she presumed was a bottle of beer.

She wasn't prepared for the sight of him as she watched him suddenly straighten, hand furiously untwisting the top as his haggard gaze suddenly fell on her own.

She was sure their reactions mirrored each other perfectly.

Eyes impossibly wide in shock, lips slightly parted as they regarded one another in what seemed like an eternity since they had last seen, much less spoken to each other.

She watched him take a step towards where she stood.

Then another.

But the sudden yank of her hand—Phoebe, she now realized—that led her towards the crowd of dancing students surrounding the bonfire halted his movements.

She wished she could say that the look of dejection that crossed his face didn't twist at her insides.

So when Phoebe offered her another gin and tonic, a slice of fresh lime added just for her benefit, she downed the drink without a second thought as she pushed the thought of Danny into the recesses of her mind.

* * *

><p>Danny's eyes squinted as he raised the bottle in his hand closer to his face, inspecting it as he silently wondered when he had finished it. His mind drew an alarming blank as he tried to remember how much beer he had consumed since he arrived at this party. Giving up on the mental task, Danny haphazardly threw the bottle into the overflowing trashcan, uncaring as the bottle rolled out of the refuse and littered the sand.<p>

Danny stalked away as he shoved his hands into his jeans, his eyes taking note of the now pitch black sky as the party raged along. From his vantage point, it seemed as though the bonfire had nearly doubled in size and the partygoers tripled in attendance.

Yet he never lost sight of the one person he desperately wanted to talk to.

Just to say hi…or something.

Yet it seemed that she was never without company. Earlier, it had been Phoebe while Rico and Jo observed from the sidelines. For the past hour or so, it had been random students that he could not quite identify in his current state and he could no longer pinpoint where exactly the rest of their—her—friends were.

A part of his conscious was acutely aware of how shitfaced he was but he couldn't seem to bring himself to care as he carefully walked over to the cooler, taking measured steps to maintain his balance.

Just as he was opening the cooler, a hand shot out to shut the lid firmly in its place. Danny looked up in irritation to find Cole giving him a disapproving glare.

"Come on, man. You've had at least five since you got here. I think you've had enough," Cole said firmly, his lips fixed into a rigid line.

Danny released an air of chuckle as he shook his head and ran a hand through his disheveled locks. "You've never had a problem with my drinking before, Cole."

"Yeah? Well maybe I do now," Cole muttered. "I'm saying this as a friend that you need to chill an—"

"You sure it's not 'cause you wanna make it to the finals this year?" Danny cut in, his tone icy as his dark eyes probed the smaller male. "I know what the team says behind my back. Something about my 'habit' made us lose the semis last year, right?"

Danny smiled ruefully as he caught sight of the muscle that jumped at the corner of Cole's clenched jaw while he could only stare back in jaded silence. "Thought so."

Danny turned to stalk away only to have his arm clasped in Cole's tight grip. He breathed deeply in a weak attempt to refrain from falling back into the violent tendencies that were still deeply ingrained into his psyche.

"Let me go, Cole," Danny grounded out between clenched teeth.

Sensing the sudden shift in Danny's mood, Cole immediately relinquished him, watching Danny with troubled eyes as he retreated some distance away.

Danny blinked repeatedly, his eyes momentarily unfocused as he caught his bearings. He wandered aimlessly along the mostly-deserted strip of sand near the ocean, allowing the now cool, salt-filled air to sober him up a bit before he felt calm enough to return to the party.

As Danny approached the bonfire, he immediately stopped cold in his tracks, his hands clenching into tight fists at the sight of Lacey and the new transfer student, Rashad Wilson, dancing particularly close to another.

He could feel his heart thrumming painfully against his rib cage as he watched the other male's large hands braced against Lacey's hips before daring to slide even lower.

And for the second time that night, Danny found himself striding over to the flagrant display before he could even piece together the coherent thoughts that implored him to stop before he caused more damage than he had already made.

* * *

><p>Lacey giggled lightly as she swayed along to the tantalizing rhythm of the smooth R&amp;B track that blared through the speakers, the back of her head cushioned against the warm chest behind her as the male in question whispered in her ear.<p>

If anyone had told her she'd find herself in such a position before she arrived, she would have scoffed at the thought.

But with three cups of gin and tonic in her system, she wasn't sure why she rejected the idea in the first place.

What she was sure of was that it had certainly been a while since she felt this relaxed.

This carefree.

And though she would never say it aloud, it felt really good being in the arms of another.

To feel attracted by another.

Desired by another.

Rashad, the ridiculously tall, broad-shouldered new student with the obsidian complexion and a beautiful smile, didn't mince words as far as letting her know what he thought of her when he first laid eyes on her and she appreciated his forwardness that didn't seem forceful or predatory in the least.

He mentioned that he'd never seen her around here and she simply replied that she could definitely say the same.

He learned that she was from Green Grove and she learned that he was the new midfielder on the team.

Her mind immediately went to one particular forward on the team that she was intimately familiar with but Rashad's large grin with his deep dimples served an effective deterrent from her thoughts.

Then a few jokes and a couple of well-placed compliments here and there and he had her attention.

Now, they danced comfortably, the warmth of the flames just a few feet away licking at their skin. Rashad expertly spun Lacey around so that they were now facing each other, not missing a beat as his large hand spanned across her back.

"You're really good at this," Lacey whispered with a growing smile.

"I get it from my mama," Rashad murmured, a lazy grin forming across his cheeks.

Lacey bit her plump lower lip to keep from laughing. Her delighted expression suddenly morphed into that of shock and acute worry as she peered over his left shoulder.

Concerned by the abrupt change in her mood, Rashad immediately looked over his shoulder, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he caught sight of Danny staring at the both of them a few yards away, his large brown eyes filled with an intensity that Rashad had never seen before in the aloof male.

Danny shuffled the sand beneath his shoes, stuffing his hands into his jean pockets as he casually sauntered closer to where they stood. He removed a hand to wipe against his mouth and jaw peppered with the growing stubble of hair that he hadn't bothered to shave during the summer.

"Hey, Desai," Rashad greeted coolly with a nudge of his chin as he turned to fully face Danny, lowering his hands from Lacey to slide them into his own pockets. "What's good?"

"Wilson," Danny grunted, his eyes ticking back and forth between the other male and Lacey, who seemed to grow more and more irate with the passing seconds as she crossed her arms tightly over her chest. "You two look like you're having fun."

"Yeah," Rashad said with a curt nod. "Lacey's real cool. I'm assuming you know her?"

"Yeah, as a matter of fact, I do," Danny breathed, his face growing somber. "Very well, actually."

"Danny," Lacey warned, stepping around Rashad to plant herself firmly between the two males. She briefly turned to Rashad, offering him an embarrassed smile as she said, "Please excuse my _friend_. Apparently he's had a little too much to drink."

"Ah~ see? She knows me so well too," Danny chuckled, yet his face remained as stony as ever, his eyes never leaving Rashad's face. "I'm guessing you don't know we go way back."

"Danny," Lacey grounded out, her voice raising in volume as she gave him a withering glare, her chest heaving as she tried to squelch her growing anger. Danny glanced at her before fixing his gaze on Rashad once more, who stared at the scene in front of him in obvious bemusement.

"Well, since we have a campfire going on, why don't we all just sit down, toast up some marshmallows and get into it, right? It's a wild one," Danny continued completely undeterred, clasping his hands together with an audible clap. "It gets really good starting when we're, like, both eleven years old and—"

"Danny!" Lacey all but shouted. Heads were beginning to turn and more than a few were willing to pause their dancing to crowd around them, curious to see the commotion unfold before them.

"…I'm gonna go grab another drink while y'all sort that out, okay?" Rashad conceded as he smoothly backed away and out of sight amidst the now disinterested crowd.

Rashad heard the rumors surrounding Danny and his dark past the day he stepped foot into Green Grove High and while he initially brushed them off as simple talk, he was now beginning to think otherwise and he certainly wasn't interested in getting caught in the whirlwind of drama.

He figured there were other cute girls here that didn't come with the baggage that was the potentially dangerous Danny Desai, so he swiftly excused himself.

Her head throbbing with the precursor of a migraine, Lacey pursed her lips and grabbed the fabric of Danny's navy blue button up, all but dragging him away from the mass of people and away from sight. Her blood was positively singing with unbridled fury and her hands were begging to whip themselves across his face so that he could feel the stinging heat of embarrassment that were flushed across her own cheeks.

She was still very much livid when she finally released him once they were a long distance away from the party, the light of the bonfire looking like a tiny speck in the background while they stood hidden behind a particularly large sand dune.

Lacey paced back and forth for a moment, her hands trembling with barely contained fury while Danny stood rigidly, his eyes on her every move as he waited for the inevitable hellfire that would justifiably descend on him through her words.

And, of course, Lacey Porter would never disappoint.

"What in the actual fuck was that, Danny!?" Lacey yelled, using a hand to shove against his chest to punctuate her point. "Huh!?"

Danny stood rigidly, his jaw clenching as he stared down at his shoes, incapable stringing the words to offer a coherent explanation.

He wished he could blame it on the alcohol but he knew that, while he was still a little out of sorts, he was perfectly lucid when he approached her and Rashad.

He also knew the reason why.

It was the burning sensation of possessiveness that filled his chest whenever he saw another male so much as look in her general direction, much less have the courage to place their hands on her.

It had simply been a while since he'd felt it, is all.

"So _now_ you're at a loss for words?" Lacey demanded incredulously. "It looked like you had plenty to say back there and now you have nothing to say?!"

"What do you want me to say, Lace?" Danny spoke up, his dark eyes boring into her own. "That I didn't like his hands all over you? Whispering in your ear? Because I'm pretty sure you figured that out the second I showed up."

Lacey stared at him, eyes widened in disbelief before she released a sarcastic puff of laughter. "I can't believe this shit," she whispered.

"What?" Danny shot back. "That I think he isn't good enough for you?"

"And you think that you are?!"

The waves crashing against the beach and the sound of her shallow breathing were the only sounds that sliced through the otherwise deafening silence as Danny numbly stared at her.

His shock at her caustic words was a surprise in and of itself for him.

Because she was completely right.

He had relinquished all rights to even make such a claim the moment his warped thoughts convinced himself that her trust and loyalty wasn't enough.

That she would _never_ understand.

That she was _incapable_ of understanding.

Now he knew that he was the one who lacked comprehension.

By sheer volumes.

And seeing the way her breath hitched in her throat, her glassy eyes focused on the top of the sand dune as to not see the emotions that flitted across his face as she folded her arms over her chest, Danny could feel his own throat constricting in misery.

"No…I don't, actually," Danny whispered, observing the way Lacey's head whipped back to gape at him in shock for the umpteenth time that day. He glanced down at his shoes once more, offering a helpless shrug before he added, "I haven't for a long time. I'm not sure…if I ever did, really."

Lacey could already feel her anger evaporating into the cool, night air.

Yet she desperately wanted to hold onto it.

Because anger was her shield.

The armor to rest of her emotions.

She could never be swayed by anything when she wore it proudly but now it was splintering and cracking the longer she stood there, seeing his crestfallen face, completely devoid of the self-assurance and the splash of arrogance that she was familiar with.

The rational part of her implored her to leave before she found herself irrevocably trapped within his aura, but, as always, she was drawn to the vulnerable layers of him that were exposed once those walls of endless charm and male bravado fell away.

"You have every reason to hate me," Danny continued as he ran an errant hand through his messy hair, nearly completely loose from its holder. "I-I should've trusted you…I should've been there for you."

Even now, Lacey felt the urge to shake her head.

Tell him that she understood. That she knew he was going through a lot and wasn't in the right frame of mind at the time.

That it wasn't his fault that he left her in more ways than one.

And she loathed that feeling tremendously.

So she stood there, tears threatening to fall as she fought the urge to acquiesce.

Fought tooth and nail not to give in.

"Then tell me why it wasn't enough," she whispered, voice trembling under the crushing weight of her own emotions. "Tell me why I wasn't enough."

Danny exhaled, a long, shuddering breath as he stepped closer. Though he could barely see with the darkness shrouding the both of them, the illuminating rays of the full moon above and the twinkling, artificial town lights allowed him just enough to see her face, her lips slightly parted as she finally realized his close proximity.

"You were more than enough," Danny murmured. "More than I could ever hope for."

Lacey swore that she was still breathing though she couldn't feel the air in her lungs.

"I just didn't see that until you were gone."

This time, he couldn't help but step just a little closer, their chests nearly flush as he raised a hand to gingerly cup the side of her face. His thumb caught the trail of a single tear that managed to escape the confines of her lower lashes and he hesitantly brushed it away with a smooth stroke of his thumb.

Lacey's eyelashes fluttered at his gentle touch, her resolve weakening with every passing second as she drowned in the depths of his eyes.

Sensing her indecision, Danny lowered his face, their lips a feather's width apart. "I'm sorry," he whispered before tentatively placing a kiss on the corner of her mouth.

"I'm sorry."

His lips brushing against the other side of her mouth.

She was tired.

She's _been_ tired for the past six months.

With every kiss, Lacey could feel her resolve crumbling even further.

Until the final one that finally captured her lips and she swore she could taste the saltiness of his own unshed tears.

And the tiny shred of resistance that Lacey had so resolutely held onto flew away and she was now clinging onto his dress shirt, pulling him impossibly close as her lips feverishly moved against his. She could sense the slight pause in his actions, probably out of pure astonishment, before he gamely began to match the intensity of her kiss.

Time ceased to become a relevant factor for the both of them as they found themselves on the powdery sand, his back cushioned against the soft terrain as she straddled his thighs, him pressing open-mouth kisses on the expanse of her smooth neck, dipping his tongue into her collarbone and worshiping the swell of her breasts, any portion of her that his mouth would be able to find, reveling in the tiny gasps that tumbled from her parted lips.

Neither of them uttered a single syllable yet they were instinctively aware of what was to transpire between them, an unspoken agreement to reconciliation in the way that they were most intimately familiar with as her trembling fingers hooked onto the hem of her billowy skirt and underwear all at once, sliding them down her endless legs as his own fingers scurried in releasing his hardened member from the confines of his jeans, finding it much too tedious to slide the material past his thighs.

His eyes roamed her haphazard appearance with something akin to reverence, drinking in her disheveled curls, her mussed crop top, her large brown eyes alight with something he hadn't seen in forever and a day, but her hand wrapping itself around his cock as she aligned it with her glistening entrance, the tip of him brushing tantalizingly against her nub, had him biting back a low groan as he craned his head back at the sensation.

His hands scrambled to anchor themselves onto her waist as he rose his hips the moment she pushed down, their physical union earning a hitched moan from the both of them. She could feel his pulsating length, causing her to instinctively clench around him and that was when he knew he probably wouldn't last very long. The thought of it alone had him immediately beating a tattoo within her, trying to carve her out as he frantically lashed his hips upwards, desperate for her to quickly reach nirvana with him before he fell apart beneath her while she quickly moved her hips to match his rhythm thrust for thrust.

Her mouth went positively slack, finding it increasingly difficult to keep her eyes on his flushed face and the way the muscle in the corner of his jaw flexed in concentration as she repeatedly slammed down onto his swollen flesh. Her escalating moans, the ones she now tried to squelch as her teeth sunk almost painfully into her lower lip, splintered off into a shriek as he tapped into that vital and precious spot within her. The rough material of his jeans chafing against her quivering thighs and the added stimulation of his thumb now flicking along her sensitive bundle of nerves had her quickly spiraling towards the pinnacle of bliss.

And as he felt her impending climax, heard it in the plaintive wail of her voice while his own loins and abdomen burned for a hard release, he reared up, bracing his hands against her back as their bodies flushed against one another, her hardened nipples piercing him through his shirt as he crashed his mouth against hers, swallowing her screams and his own choked cry as they crumbled apart in each other's arms.

Waves upon waves of ecstasy rained upon them for an undeterminable amount of time, their hips reflexively jerking in occasion as they slowly descended from their mutual high, their chests heaving as they inhaled much-needed air into their lungs. He felt as though his spine had slipped out of his back, causing him tumble gracelessly back into the sand with her in his arms.

His fingers danced along the curve of her back, the words he'd always been dying to say on the tip of his tongue as he opened his eyes to find her staring at him.

"Lace, I—"

And she knew exactly what he wanted to say but she was unsure of how her heart would receive the words so she silenced him with a deep kiss.

Salt water leaked into Lacey's sandals and drenched the elongated portion of her skirt yet, if she minded, she certainly didn't show it as she gazed at the expanse of the ocean before her, bleeding into the pitch black sky sprinkled with faint light of distant stars.

The sight of it all was always more than a little humbling for Lacey, always amazed at how the large body of water stretched beyond her sight, how its waves would creep along the sand before slithering back to where they came, only to repeat the motion endlessly.

And she couldn't help but release a puff of laughter at the sudden thought.

"What are you thinking about?" Danny murmured, his voice nearly inaudible amidst the sound of the rising tide crashing against the beach. It was the first words he'd spoken after they had finally managed to disentangle their limbs and peel themselves off of the beach to arrange their respective clothing, only to sit next to one another on the sand, facing the ocean in silence.

Lacey merely offered a wry smile. Several minutes of silence stretched between them and just as Danny was beginning to think that she was going to refrain from answering her question altogether, she said, "Remember when we were little kids and our folks would bring us out here? We were always running away from the waves when they got too close, even though we knew they'd always flow back into the ocean."

Danny nodded, the corner of his lips curving upwards as he was swept into a sense of nostalgia. "Yeah…I remember."

Lacey nodded as well, swallowing thickly as she self-consciously folded her arms across her chest, chancing a brief look at him as she fidgeted in her seated position. "Me and you…we're kind of like that—the waves and the beach, I mean."

Danny frowned, bewilderment etched on his features. "How?"

Lacey exhaled slowly, her eyes focusing on anywhere but his face. "There's always this ebb and flow with us," she explained, gesticulating a bit to further her point. "Nothing's ever really…fixed. Constant."

Danny nodded slowly, a ball of ice forming in the pit of his stomach as he digested her words.

He understood it.

He even agreed with it.

But he was far from content.

And it was something that he intended to rectify as long as it was within his power to do so.

Because, the undeniable fact of the matter was that he loved her.

To the moon—hell, the very edge of the universe—and back.

And he was willing to put his life on the line to wager that she felt the same.

He just needed to make things right.

His eyes lowered towards the hand she now braced on the sand between them, silently marveling the beautiful contrast of her tone against his.

And instead of verbally expressing his response, Danny gently placed his hand above hers, smiling in assurance at the slightly startled expression that flitted across her face as she stared at him in something akin to wonder.

As he slid his fingers between hers, the sand seeping through the gaps, he felt her fingers eventually intertwine with his.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Thank you for reading!


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